


Force of Gravity

by AstridEquinox



Series: Dream Team Oneshots [3]
Category: DreamWasTaken - Fandom, GeorgeNotFound - Fandom, Karl Jacobs - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Sapnap - Fandom, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Gay Male Character, Gay Panic, Gay Rights, I am having a hard time finishing projects as is, Karl is a human, M/M, Pyrokine, Sapnap is a god, because i like it, but no promises, god AU, might add another chapter later on with some smut, they fall in love, we will see what I am in the mood for when the time comes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:48:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28183431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AstridEquinox/pseuds/AstridEquinox
Summary: “I can’t tell you,” he repeated, hanging his head in shame. “I’m sorry.”Karl’s breath hitched, the mortal staring at the god with a very evident feeling of horror in his eyes. He looked to be both scared and betrayed, and it was then that Sapnap was reminded of the obvious hierarchical difference between the two of them. As long as gravity kept Karl rooted to the Earth, they could never be together.
Relationships: Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound, Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Karl Jacobs/Sapnap
Series: Dream Team Oneshots [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1895725
Comments: 23
Kudos: 244
Collections: Completed stories I've read





	Force of Gravity

**Author's Note:**

> There are implications to minor characters such as Schlatt, Fundy, Wilbur, Niki, Tommy, and Tubbo, but their characters are not major parts to the story. It might be kind of hard to tell about who they are unless I make this note, so I am making it here.

Sapnap was different. He was different in a good way, or at least that’s what everyone told him, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Anger had been festering inside of him for the longest time, anger and that familiar feeling of longing. Sapnap didn’t know what he was longing for, but he knew that _something_ was missing, and he had to figure out what it was.

The fire god had spent an unhealthy amount of time walking amongst the humans, ignoring what his friends would tell him about getting too attached to any one of them. He could practically hear Dream’s voice in his head right now, that all too familiar phrase of “Humans don’t live forever. They are inferior to deities like us. Don’t interact with them or you might end up hurt in the end.”

Sapnap hated it. He hated getting lectured by his friends every single time, hated the fact that everyone seemed to have someone except for him. Dream had his other friend George, BadBoyHalo had this very chaotic and young god named Skeppy, but him? He had nobody.

Sapnap was beginning to think that all hope was lost, that he wouldn’t find the missing piece of himself and was destined to be alone forever, until he saw _him_.

That one mortal with the golden laugh and eyes as blue as the ocean. The man that he had been observing for the longest time, for _years_ , and whom he had watched grow from a curious teenager into the fine young man that he was now. Even though Karl didn’t know he existed, Sapnap had some sort of intimate connection with him, and his whole life turned into trying to make this boy happy in any way that he could.

Sapnap knew that he couldn’t do much. He only had fire powers, and fire didn’t make people happy. The humans were scared of fire, as it was destructive and it spread at a quick rate, although Sapnap found the hidden beauty in it. He loved every single stage of watching a fire grow, from the first stray spark to the mix of oranges, yellows, and reds that would billow up into a beautiful display of color. Sapnap would give _anything_ to go down and introduce himself to the village boy, to show him who he was and the amazing things that he could do, but he just… couldn’t.

So Sapnap settled for watching from afar, making sure that the boy was protected in any way possible. Now at the ripe age of nineteen, Sapnap would follow Karl around the markets, to those small and scenic places in the woods in which he would relax, and even sometimes in his own house. Karl never saw him, he made sure of it. Sapnap didn’t have any other power other than fire, but he was very good at hiding. 

That was until, however, he was caught one day.

It was late in the night, the full moon approaching, and Karl had been out when nobody else was. Sapnap had noticed this, deciding to do his nightly routine of checking to make sure the man was safe, but had been worried when he hadn’t seen the man either in bed or reading like he normally chose to do. The arsonist had ended up following the mortal into the depths of the woods, his anxiety only growing as he watched him eventually find a place to settle.

Karl had been carrying some leaves and a small satchel over his shoulder, the contents inside of the bag being unknown. Sapnap ducked behind trees and watched with narrowed eyes, Karl bending down as he set the bag on the ground. He took out a very old looking bow and a thicker piece of wood, setting those on the ground as he turned to the leaves he had gathered. He made sure that all of the leaves were grouped in one big bundle, setting it down on the ground a formation similar to that of a nest before turning to the things that he had pulled out.

Karl crouched down, keeping one of his knees planted firmly on the grass as he held down the larger piece of wood with his foot. He reached into his bag again and took out a sharp knife, pressing the tip into the edge of the wood as he began to cave a depression and a notch into it. He then reached for a thicker piece of wood, one that looked fairly straight, and began to carve off all the bark. Once that was done, he made sure that the edges were smooth, and followed up his previous steps by creating a sharp point into one end of the stick. 

Karl hummed as he worked, obviously knowing a _lot_ about fire. He appeared like he was going to make one, which intrigued Sapnap, causing the raven to lean forwards just slightly. His head peeked out from behind the bark of a tree, eyes wide as he watched the mortal — _his_ mortal — work to create an ember.

By now Karl had set up all his materials, his foot still being pressed firmly on the ground as he held the straight piece of wood on top of the depression, keeping the point of it upwards. He was holding a thicker piece of wood on top of the point, eyes narrowed as he held the bow in the other hand. He inhaled deeply as he began to create friction, moving the bow back and forth as he watched the familiar ashes begin to gather around and inside of the hole that he had made.

Needless to say, Sapnap was impressed. He observed Karl eventually gather enough of the powder, pulling the notch of wood out from underneath the rectangular-shaped wood block. He set it off to the side, keeping an eye on the smoking powder as he reached for the pile of leaves again.

Karl waited until the ashes began to turn into an ember, seeing the top of them begin to turn slightly orange. He smiled at his success, holding the leaves in one hand as he picked up the wood with the powder in the other. He began to gently slide the black cinders into the pile of leaves, burying them in the middle as he held the nest out a decent way in front of him.

Karl turned over his shoulder to take a deep breath, not wanting to inhale anything that he wasn’t supposed to, then turned back to the leaves. He blew on them softly, blue eyes illuminated with a hint of orange as a fire began to spark up and form. Karl was still holding the bundle as he smiled, not worried about the spreading flames beginning to lick at his fingers. He made no rush of putting the pile down, watching it gingerly as he began to collect more kindling around the area.

_Gods_ , he was perfect, wasn’t he? 

Sapnap hadn’t realized that he had voiced his thoughts until he saw Karl’s head jerk backward, glancing over his shoulder with narrowed but playful eyes. “I know you’re there,” he whispered, patting the ground next to him in an attempt to coax the stranger out of hiding. “Come on out, I don’t bite.”

Sapnap hesitated, recalling the words of all his friends. They would tell him to stay away from this human, to run and to head back to the skies where they stayed together, but he didn’t want to. He had been waiting for the longest time to finally get a chance to better know Mister Karl Jacobs, and now seemed like it was the time.

Sapnap took a deep breath before walking out from behind the tree, approaching the mortal as his face slowly became illuminated by the light. He heard an audible gasp from Karl and instantly took it as a bad thing, taking a sheepish step back as he brought a hand up to hide his face. The god had always been insecure about himself, whether someone would believe it or not, and he hated Karl’s reaction to seeing him for the first time. What if he wasn’t enough? What if Karl hated him? What if—

“Hey, no!” Karl called, pushing himself up onto his feet as he held out a hand for the god. The fire reflected on that fluffy brown hair of his, illuminating certain parts of it as the orange hue in his eyes faded. He gazed at the god with a curious but friendly expression on his face, that lopsided yet perfect smile present on his lips. “Don’t be scared! I’m not mad or anything, I just want to know who you are.”

Sapnap chewed on his bottom lip, letting his hand slip from his face as he stared at the beautiful man in front of him. He blushed slightly at the fact that Karl was taller, having to tilt his head back just slightly to look at him. Sapnap appreciated the sight of the mortal for another moment before finding the courage to walk forwards, stopping about a foot in front of him as he took his hand.

“Hi,” Sapnap tried, hating how gruff his voice sounded. It had been a while since he had talked to a mortal, changed his voice to be more humane and less echoey. If he was going to indulge himself and finally talk to Karl, he had to be sure that the mortal had no idea that he was a god.

“Hello!” Karl said enthusiastically, sitting back down on the grass facing the fire. He tugged on Sapnap’s hand, causing the man to double over and groan a bit at the sensation. Nonetheless, Sapnap was forced to sit down, and that’s exactly what he did.

The god placed his arms behind him, pulling his hand away from Karl’s as he leaned back and put his weight on them. He folded one leg on top of the other, craning his neck to look at the brunet as he sat in front of the fire. 

Karl was watching the fire with an intensity Sapnap had never seen in a mortal, a sort of appreciation towards the flame that he thought only he harbored. The god had never seen any human be so enraptured with fire like Karl was, and the sight of that made him feel slightly intimidated.

“So… who are you exactly?” Karl spoke up, turning his head to look at Sapnap. The two of them locked eyes, chocolate brown ones gazing into sapphire blue irises. The god couldn’t help but feel a bit apprehensive about the question, wondering if Karl was having suspicions of whether or not he was human.

“Wh-what do you mean?” Sapnap asked as best as he could, stumbling over his words as he tried to look completely relaxed. Normally he was so laid back about things and didn’t care, but this mortal… what was he doing to him?

“Like, what’s your name?” Karl giggled, sticking his tongue out at the raven as he looked him up and down. “And why were you stalking me?”

“Oh—” Sapnap chuckled, blushing a bit at the sound of his laugh. It was cute, everything about Karl was cute, and he wanted to make him his already. “Well, my name is S— uh, Nick,” he interrupted himself, deciding that a mortal such as this one would not be able to understand the uniqueness of his real name. “And I was in this forest before you. I don’t have enough money to go live anywhere good, so I just stay out here and camp.”

Karl nodded slowly, taking in the story. He seemed to buy it, which was good. The human grinned and then spoke up again, that melodic and cheery voice of his causing Sapnap to feel butterflies in his stomach. “Well, I’m Karl,” he started, folding his legs under him as he sat with his elbow propped upon his knee. He rested the side of his cheek on his hand, the extra fat there causing a soft crease in the skin. Sapnap was absolutely enraptured from his body language alone. “And I’m not very rich either, but I live in a small home and manage to get by. Although, nature is where I most feel like myself, so I come out here often.”

“Do you?” Sapnap smiled, though he already knew these things. 

“Yeah!” Karl exclaimed, that beaming smile a beacon of happiness to the god. “I like being anywhere from nice flower fields to secluded waterfalls… and I decided that I would try camping tonight!”

“I can see that,” Sapnap replied as vaguely as possible, gesturing to the fire that the human had managed to create. “You made yourself a nice fire here. I’m surprised that someone like you knows how to do that.”

Karl’s brow furrowed as he cocked his head, looking like a confused puppy. Sapnap’s breath hitched as he watched him, his nervousness returning. His anxiety peaked, however, when he processed the words that Karl said next. 

“Someone… like me? What do you mean?”

Sapnap’s eyes widened at the statement, his mind racing with excuses that he could say. “Uh— I mean, h-have you noticed that I am not from around here?”

Karl watched him for a moment longer before breaking out into another grin, the curious gaze still prevalent on his face as he responded. “Yeah, I have! You don’t look anything like the villagers around here. You’re a lot more… mysterious, I would say.”

_Mysterious_. Sapnap had been called mysterious many times, mainly when he was receiving prayer from the citizens on Earth down below, but the way that Karl said it had him feeling something _more_. “I mean,” he began, smiling back at Karl as he took in the sight of the crackling flame. “I had to learn a lot about survival, at least where I grew up. My family wasn’t rich enough to stay in any one place so we were nomads. We kept traveling until the rest of them died, and I was the only one left. I… I have seen your village,” he took a deep breath, stalling as he continued his story. “And from what it looks like, none of you need to know skills such as starting a fire. I’m just surprised that you were able to do it.”

Karl blinked, taking in the sight of the raven before also turning to admire his flame. “All of the people where I live are scared of it. The temple to worship the fire god is abandoned and unused. I think it’s sad, sad that people aren’t able to appreciate something as wonderful as this. I mean, fire can do so many things!”

Sapnap was left speechless, watching in amazement as Karl spoke _positively_ about the flame. It was rare, so rare to find a gem among a bunch of rocks, but he knew at that moment that he had finally found one. “It’s interesting you would think that way,” Sapnap breathed, trying to ignore the fact that his cheeks felt warmer. “Why do you appreciate fire when everyone else hates it? What is so special about the fire god to you?”

Karl’s eyes softened as he watched the flame begin to sputter, moving more leaves into the pile to keep it kindling. “Fire can do so many things,” he started, looking a bit wistful as he spoke. “It has the power to both create and destroy, but people only focus on the latter. They forget the fact that our ancestors used fire to survive on cold days, that it is used to cook warm meals, and that it was a gift bestowed upon us from the fire god. We didn’t _need_ to have it, we could have gone without it, and we would have been fine. Granted, life would have been much harder, but it is still possible to live without fire,” Karl sighed, turning his head so that he could look Sapnap in the eyes.

He continued, “Fire is now becoming more of a weapon. People are utilizing it to try and attack other people, uneducated ones are accidentally causing fires that can break out amongst the city, and it can also be used as a form of torture. My village has banned the use of fire and many others are following suit. I feel lost and hopeless,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “And I wish that fire was appreciated more. I wish that the fire _god_ was appreciated as well. I bet… I bet if I ever got to meet him, he would be the strongest and wisest of them all,” he blushed a bit as he returned his attention to Sapnap, laughing nervously as he quickly added, “but that’s just me, I guess.”

Sapnap had never met someone who appreciated fire as much as he did, and now he finally had. He knew that he had liked Karl since the beginning, but he didn’t know that he would be _this_ good of a person! He felt his heart melt in front of this mortal, felt himself becoming more vulnerable to him. He knew that he had found the missing piece of himself, and he would do anything to keep him.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Sapnap lurched forwards, taking both of Karl’s hands in his own as he looked the flustered boy in the eyes. “If you come back here every night,” he began, eyes ablaze as he gazed into those shining blue ones the human possessed, “I’ll talk about fire with you. It’s not much, but it’s something, and I think that I know a bit more about it as well.”

Karl was quiet for a long time, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape as he stared at the god. Sapnap was worried that he had crossed a line, that he had pushed Karl too far, but when he heard him speak, the whole world seemed to stop for just the two of them. 

“I… I’d like that,” Karl said after a while, smiling apprehensively at the man holding his hands. “I’d like that a lot. Same time as now?” He suggested, wanting to further plan their future meetups. 

“Yes, that works,” Sapnap agreed, pulling his hands away from Karl. He watched the human lift his own hands, turning them over as he gazed down at them, but didn’t think too much of it. 

Sapnap pushed himself up onto his feet, turning to walk back towards the trees as he waved behind him. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then, Karl. Bye!”

Karl smiled and waved back at him, watching the raven go. “Bye!” He called with that angelic voice of his, and Sapnap was relieved that he couldn’t see the furious blush on his cheeks by the time that he was gone.

* * *

Over the next couple of months, Sapnap would go down to Earth every evening and spend it with Karl. The two of them would talk about fire sometimes and random things the next, and even within the first week of them knowing each other a beautiful friendship began to blossom. If Sapnap wasn’t in love before, he surely was now, and the thought was both exciting yet frightening.

Sapnap thought that he was fine, that he would be able to continue to visit Earth and get to know his mortal, but he didn’t take into account the fact that he might get caught.

When Dream approached him in the middle of the night, right before Sapnap was going to go down to Earth to talk with Karl, he knew that there was something up. Dream was normally with the water god, George, and he seldomcame to visit anyone at this time. Needless to say, Sapanp was nervous as a result, so when he turned to Dream he stumbled over his words.

“Dream,” Sapnap looked up at him, bowing a little bit as he hung his head in front of the higher god. Dream happened to be one of the best and most respected gods among them all, being the god of emotions, and was similar to a puppeteer, even among the other gods in the sky. “What brings you here?”

“I think you know _exactly_ why I’m here,” Dream mused, folding his arms as he glared down at the young fire god. “I know about your little fling with that _human_.”

Sapnap flinched at the way he said the word, hating how it sounded like venom in Dream’s mouth every time. “Yeah?” He challenged, placing a few more pieces of firewood into his bag. He ran a hand through his charcoal black hair and gazed back up at the blond god, frowning as he did. “What about it?”

“What _about_ it?” Dream echoed, the tone of his voice sounding entirely less than pleased. “Sapnap, we've already discussed this. You can’t be conversing with the humans, you’ll get too attached!”

Sapnap grit his teeth, hoisting the bag over his shoulder as he walked up in front of Dream. He tilted his head back to look him in the eyes, trying to maintain that calm and composed stature he knew that Dream had been trying to teach him about. “Why is that a bad thing?” He challenged, knowing that he would regret it in the end. “Why can’t I talk with the humans? As long as they don’t know who I am it’s fine, right?”

Dream shook his head, looking exasperated now. “No. Sapnap, I’ve been over this with you multiple times,” he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm himself down to explain. “Humans are inferior to us. They have mortality and they will all die in the end. They have much shorter lifespans than we do, and they are just not _equal_ to someone of high stature like you. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Sapnap felt the anger that he harbored begin to grow, bubbling up like a chemical reaction ready to spill over the top of its test tube. He balled his hands into fists, narrowing his eyes while taking in the sight of the man. “Bullshit!” He snapped, calling Dream out on his lies. “You don’t care about my feelings at _all_ , the only thing that you care about is maintaining control! You think that the human that I am with is not good enough to be with a god, and that is the _only_ reason you are coming to me! I know what you’re doing, you’re trying to manipulate me into listening to you, but it isn’t going to work!”

Dream flinched at his words, looking hurt as he processed them. He hesitantly reached his hand out towards his friend, not wanting him to be hurting. “Sapnap,” he began, trying to put it on his shoulder in a reassuring way. Sapnap brought his own hand up and slapped Dream’s away, causing the blond god to pull it back and gently hold it in the other. “That’s not true. I just don’t want to see you hurt when this human eventually dies. He won’t stay young forever, but as a god you naturally do.”

“Oh, that’s not _true_ !?” Sapnap yelled, feeling his hands get warmer while continuing to yell. “Then why don’t you ever visit me or talk to me unless you are lecturing me? Why don’t you notice that my temples are starting to become abandoned and ruined? Why don’t you know how much I have been _hurting_ all this time!?” He ranted, finally getting his feelings off his chest as orange flames crackled against the skin of his hands. “That’s right, because you don’t _care_.”

Dream was silent for a long time, chewing on his lower lip as he tried to figure out what to say. “Sap—” he started, hoping to try and calm the angry god, but was interrupted by the raven forcefully pushing past him and making his way out of his bedroom. 

“Save it,” he grumbled, the fire gone from his hands but sparks still flying from his nails. He held the bag over his shoulder, walking towards the netherite platform that he had next to his house. He lifted his free hand, summoning a column of fire as he stared at the inferno in front of him. He heard the sound of steps behind him, followed by a sharp breath as Dream prepared to speak once more, but the fire god held up his hand in a motion that said ‘be quiet’. “I’m going to Earth and you can’t stop me.”

And without another word, Sapnap stepped into the burning flames that he had created, feeling himself be transported down to Earth.

Dream sighed as he watched him go, shaking his head. “Sapnap,” he whispered, truly worried for his friend. “If only you knew what was coming…”

* * *

Sapnap didn’t know what was coming. Everything was normal to him as he felt himself being transported back into the middle of the forest, looking around the moment he felt his feet plant themselves on the soft grass. He walked to the normal clearing, seeing Karl sitting there by a fire that the god could only assume he had made himself. The raven chuckled and moved until he was standing next to the human, inviting himself to sit down next to him like they normally did.

“You’re late,” Karl said bluntly, staring at the fire as the orange light reflected in his pupils. “You’re never late.”

“I’m sorry about that,” Sapnap apologized, moving a hand to be placed gently on Karl’s shoulder as he looked at him. “I had to talk to somebody.”

Karl frowned, hunched over as he gazed at the crackling flame. “Who?” He questioned. “Who did you have to talk to? I thought you said that you had no family or friends, other than me, that is.”

Sapnap hesitated, chewing his bottom lip as he tried to come up with an answer that would make sense. He had told Karl that he was avoiding everyone that he could, the brunet being the only one that he had contact with. Karl had taken pride in the fact that he was the only one Sapnap could trust and spoke about it like he had the highest honor in the world. Seeing him so dejected now was almost unsettling.

“Someone found me. We got into a conversation,” Sapnap repeated, trying to beat around the bush. Karl didn’t look too happy with this answer, turning his head so that he could look the god in the eyes.

“You never do that,” he repeated his previous statement, folding his arms as he looked the raven in the eyes. “And you just said that you talked to somebody. You’re lying, aren’t you?”

“Lying!?” Sapnap gasped, trying to feign being appalled at the accusation. He lurched backward, eyes wide as he stared at the human. He certainly wasn’t horrified at the accusation as he made it out to be, but he was indeed nervous, not wanting his cover to be blown. Everything was going so well— why did Karl have to suddenly get serious _now_? “I would never lie to you.”

“But you are,” Karl shook his head, closing his eyes as he took a deep breath. “You’re talking to someone and you won’t even tell me who they are. You were late because of that. How am I supposed to not think that you are lying when you tell me one thing and do the exact opposite?”

Sapnap felt his heart shatter, knowing that it was true. He was indeed lying to Karl, creating a fake web of deception to hide his own identity. He wanted to come clean, tell the brunet everything that he was thinking about, but he knew better. He knew that he could never tell Karl that he was a god. That was forbidden.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, watching Karl with panic as his eyes widened and his mouth turned down into a frown.

“So you admit it!” Karl proclaimed, pushing himself up onto his feet as he pointed at Sapnap. “You admit that you were lying to me!”

Sapnap immediately got up as well, putting up his hands in a sign of surrender. “I— yes, but I really don’t want to talk about this right now—” he stammered, though he was only interrupted by the human again.

“Who were you talking to?” Karl asked again, looking frightened as he took a step back. “I’ve told you who my enemies are, I’ve _told_ you who I don’t like! Are you talking with one of them?”

“No!” Sapnap shook his head, his heart aching for the boy as he took another step forward. “No, that’s not it at all!”

“Then what _is_ it!?” Karl fretted, wrapping his arms around himself as he looked around the woods. “You know that I have been looked down on in the past! You know that my uniqueness could get me in big trouble! You know…” he sighed, lowering his voice as he looked down at his feet. “You know that I am gay, Nick. There are people out to get me and I have told you everything about them. Are you talking with them, Nick? Are you one of them?”

Sapnap shook his head again, letting his hands drop to his sides as he looked at the human in front of him. He recalled all of the stories that the mortal would tell him, the very humane ones about how he was shunned for certain things that he liked and for his sexuality. The society in which he lived in was not as accepting as the gods were when they were living on the clouds, and Sapnap had to admit that he felt upset with himself for letting the humans think in such a malicious and excluding way. He pondered what to say next, not wanting to anger the mortal anymore.

“No, Karl. I would never do that to you,” he eventually settled on, hoping that would work enough to satisfy him. “I would never hurt you like that.”

“Then why can’t you tell me who you were talking to?” Karl sniffled, tears pricking at his eyes. “I’ve known you for months, Nick, _months_ , and you can’t even tell me who you were having a conversation with?”

Sapnap took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down while thinking about what to say. He couldn’t tell Karl the truth, and that was pretty much it. If the mortal was this distraught over a situation that a god-like him shouldn’t be dealing with, there was no real way to comfort him.

“I can’t tell you,” he repeated, hanging his head in shame. “I’m sorry.”

Karl’s breath hitched, the mortal staring at the god with a very evident feeling of horror in his eyes. He looked to be both scared and betrayed, and it was then that Sapnap was reminded of the obvious hierarchical difference between the two of them. As long as gravity kept Karl rooted to the Earth, they could never be together.

“Fine,” Karl finished, kicking some dust towards the fire to put it out. “We’re done here.”

As Karl turned on his heel and walked towards the exit of the forest, Sapnap watched, heartbroken as he saw the one person that he loved leaving him.

* * *

The next week passed by in slow motion. Sapnap was miserable up in the clouds, not wanting to go down to Earth for anything. He wasn’t the most present amongst the gods, but he certainly wasn’t missing completely, and after a day or two of not leaving his room, the others began to notice.

He received visits from both George and BadBoyHalo, each coming in and trying to talk him out of whatever mood he had gotten himself in, but it didn’t work. Sapnap refused to even say a word, only causing the others to worry more. Sapnap was never quiet, not when he was angry _or_ sad. He was always one to voice his opinions, maybe not directly, but vaguely, and the fact that he was not doing that invoked something in George. 

George was desperate to find out why Sapnap was upset, so he went to the only person that he knew of who would help him.

“Dream,” he spoke bluntly, knocking on the taller god’s open door. He saw the blond working in the back of his room, and he didn’t want to invite himself in without letting him know of another presence. “Can I talk to you about something?”

Dream said nothing, still focusing on his papers as he lifted one hand. He gestured for George to come further into the room, giving him the silent consent that the water god was looking for. George took a few more steps in, closing the door behind them as he stood in the middle of it. He folded his arms, waiting for Dream to speak up, but realized that he eventually was not going to get a response, so George took the initiative. 

“Do you know why Sapnap’s upset?” George spoke bluntly, straight to the point while his eyes bore into the back of Dream’s skull. He watched as Dream stirred slightly, moving another paper over the one that he was previously working on. 

“It’s because of me,” he answered, matching the curtness of George’s tone. 

“It’s always because of you,” George observed, walking over to Dream’s side as he peered over his shoulder. “What are you working on?”

“The usual,” Dream grunted, not perturbed by the new presence behind him. “Going through requests from other gods and reviewing behavioral reports of certain souls. I’m almost done.”

“You can take a break for now,” George suggested, wrapping his arms around Dream’s torso from behind. “Our friend is more important.”

“Our _friend_ broke the most basic rules that gods are supposed to abide by,” Dream hissed but leaned back into George’s touch. “It’s his own fault that he got hurt.”

“You’re being a hypocrite again, Dreamie,” George reminded him, knowing that this was a coping mechanism for the god. While Dream was the god of emotions, he certainly wasn’t the best at psychological treatment; that was more of Bad’s category.

“Sorry,” Dream apologized, running a hand through his hair. “I’m just worried about him.”

“We all are,” George informed him, pulling his arms back. He stood up straight again, walking over so that he was in front of Dream’s chair. He put his hand under the god’s chin, gently tilting his head up as he gazed down at him. “Why don’t you talk about it?”

“George,” Dream shuddered, leaning into his grip while closing his eyes. “It’s complicated.”

George laughed, throwing his head back for a moment. He eventually regained his composure, moving so that he was straddling the blond’s lap. “So are we,” he pointed out, bringing up the complexity of their open relationship. “It’s nothing new. You should talk about it, you know that I am here to listen.”

Dream stared at his boyfriend for a long moment, taking in those comforting hazel eyes and the reassuring grin on his lips before eventually giving in. “He’s in love with a human,” Dream spilled, moving his hands to rest on George’s hips as he pulled him closer. “And I told him that he couldn’t see him anymore. He ignored me and went back down there, and while I don’t know the exact details of the situation, I can assume that there were discrepancies in any story he tried to produce.”

“Sap is not the best at keeping secrets,” George agreed, humming as he pressed his face into the crook of Dream’s neck. “And why exactly can’t he converse with the humans? You never told me that before we got together.”

“I don’t want him to get too attached,” Dream smiled at the gesture, pressing a sweet kiss to the top of George’s scalp. “Humans are not immortal like we are. They age much faster and die quickly. We don’t.”

“Who’s to say that we don’t need more gods up here?” George argued, pulling back from Dream’s neck to gaze into those emerald green eyes of his. “It gets kind of repetitive after a while, and sometimes stressful for some of us to carry out our jobs alone.”

“Everyone is doing a great job as is. We don’t need any more gods,” Dream thundered, always speaking as if his word was law.

George shook his head, pressing his forehead against Dream’s. “You know that’s not the case. We have a god that was once a mortal, Dream. The Blood God was a very skilled warrior that was made immortal after observing his tact. _You_ were the one that was all for him being transformed into one of us.”

Dream frowned, pulling his head back from George’s face. He looked into the brunet’s eyes, his own slightly narrowed. “That was the _one_ exception, George,” he explained. “He was very skilled, yes, but he was also _dangerous_. If he wasn’t promoted and given the status that he yearned for, he could have caused mass chaos down on Earth.”

“Dream,” George clicked his tongue, his smile also fading. “You can’t possibly think that I’d believe that. The council of gods that we have at our disposal would have been enough to solve that problem, and all mortals die eventually. You said it yourself, we didn’t _need_ any more gods, yet you were quick to convert the god of blood when you saw how strong he was.”

Dream grit his teeth, pushing George off of him. He watched as the water god stood up straight, gazing up at him while he was still sitting. “George,” he drawled, glaring at him with a slightly frustrated expression on his face. “You’re beginning to speak out of line.”

“You can’t deny the truth,” George huffed, folding his arms. “You and I both know that. You should listen to me, Dream. You know that things turn out better when you do.”

It was a fact and they both knew it. George was generally always right, almost as good at helping people through their problems as Bad was, but Dream didn’t quite like it. He didn’t like that George was always right, but there were times in which he hadn’t listened to him before, and the result was bad one hundred percent of the time.

Dream almost felt compelled to listen to George, but something was holding him back. He knew about a certain event that nobody else knew about, nobody else except for the god of life and death. He didn’t want Sapnap to get hurt.

“I’m sorry,” Dream shook his head, turning back to his papers. “I can’t let him see that human any more. You’ll understand why soon enough.”

George grit his teeth, eyes widening slightly when he realized that the god was not going to listen to him. “Dream—” he started, only to be interrupted by a cold glare. 

“No,” Dream concluded, digging his nails into the wood of his desk. “This conversation is over. You can go back to doing your job.”

George gazed at Dream for another moment, taking in the full sight of him. “You know that he will never forgive you for this,” he concurred, ultimately having the final say. George then turned on his heel, walking outside of Dream’s room as he closed the door behind him. Once he was gone, Dream put his head in his hands.

He wanted Sapnap to be happy, he really did, but this was better for him. He couldn’t expose Sapnap to the pain that came with loving that human, especially when there was such an obvious hierarchical difference between the two of them. He was doing the right thing.

Right?

* * *

Sapnap had to tell Karl the truth.

Even if it would be the last time that he would see him, the last time that he would talk to him, he had to let the brunet know why. He had to reassure him that he wasn’t a traitor, that he was merely just a lost soul, a deity who didn’t know how to be a god.

He knew that if he were to tell him, though, that would be it. Even if Karl found it in that kind heart of his to forgive him, to try and get to know him again, he didn’t know if it would be genuine. Dream was right, mortals acted very differently than gods did, and he certainly didn’t want Karl to do that solely to appease him. Even if Karl decided to treat him the same, treat him like a _human_ , he knew that wouldn’t be acceptable. Mortals couldn’t converse casually with immortals. It was as simple as that.

Sapnap walked up to the platform he used to teleport, sighing as he felt his sneakers make a clopping noise on the hard rock. He looked down at his shoes, wondering if he had the bravery and strength to do something like this. Did he really want to sacrifice Karl for this?

He supposed that it was the only correct thing to do. Karl deserved it. He deserved to know the truth and to not be left in the dark; Sapnap didn’t want him thinking that he was conspiring against him! Even if Karl hadn’t gone into great detail about his past, Sapnap could tell that he had been hurt before, and he didn’t want the brunet to be hurt ever again.

Clenching his jaw, Sapnap raised his hand, watching as the familiar fire column was brought up from the ground. He stared at it for a long while before eventually stepping inside of it, feeling the familiar teleporting sensation. When he felt the bottoms of his shoes hit the ground again, he looked around to determine where he was.

He had willed himself to be teleported close to wherever Karl was; not in the same room or general area, but still close enough to find him easily. Sapnap was surprised when he found himself standing right outside of a certain house in his village, the house in which Karl lived at.

Sapnap completely forgot that he was standing in the middle of the town, gazing at the scenery and the other houses around. The sight that he was met with was what had taken him back, and he felt enraged that he hadn’t noticed this sooner.

Nobody was out on the road. Everyone seemed to be inside their respective homes, which in itself was unusual enough. The few people that were outside were either kidnapped or kidnapping others, a group of bandits rushing around the area to steal what goods or people that they could.

Sapnap’s eyes narrowed, immediately thinking of a way to fix all this. He knew that he wasn’t supposed to get involved in the problems of the mortals, not unless there was a huge war or it was inevitable, and even then it was always some of the more sophisticated and experienced gods that got tangled into the specifics. It appeared that the gods such as Dream or George didn’t know about this situation, and Sapnap certainly couldn’t go back to them if he didn’t want to blow his cover. Besides, this would be a good chance to prove himself useful. He could help from afar, right? These were his people as much as they were the other gods’, and he wanted to make sure that they stayed safe.

Sapnap immediately ducked behind a building, pressing his back up against it. He kept himself quiet, listening for any sort of noises or some information that could prove useful to him. He heard the muffled noises of bandits conversing, the silent screams of the victims kidnapped, and the clashing noises of various kinds of weapons. The raven clenched his jaw, raising a hand to summon a ball of fire. He watched some bandits walking closer to him, preparing to strike.

Once he saw three of them pass by, he threw his hand out in a straight and powerful motion, watching fire erupt from his fingertips. The sparks fired up and created a brilliant inferno, the blaze surrounding the three bandits to such an extent that they were trapped. Sapnap smirked and curled his outstretched hand into a fist, watching as the fire closed in around the confused mortals and instead began to burn them alive.

The stench was unbearable to most, but Sapnap was experienced. He hadn’t been violent with his fire before, but the ability to handle the odor came naturally with the power. He observed flesh slowly turning dark and peeled, some of it even melting from the intensity of the blaze. The humans could think that they knew everything about fire, that they had the hottest flame of them all, but Sapnap knew better. All the gods were able to turn anything of their specialty into something stronger than whatever the humans had. It was a gift, and Sapnap took great satisfaction in watching the corpses slowly deform and fall on the ground.

The raven put out the flame with a flick of his wrist, watching as something looking entirely gory and alien was left in its midst. He wrinkled his nose, making his way out from his hiding spot behind the building. He stepped over the bodies, not caring much for the criminals. Karma was a very real thing as a result of the deities, and Sapnap wanted to make sure that every malicious person out there got what was coming to them.

The same process continued, Sapnap hiding behind certain walls and plants as he waited for more of his victims to pass by. Bandits would pass by and the raven would kill them, not caring about who they were or their motives. All he knew was that they were bad people, and they put his human at risk.

His human. 

His Karl. 

His _everything_.

Thinking about Karl caused there to be a sharp sting of pain in Sapnap’s chest, but he ignored it for the time being. He would think about what he was going to say to him later on; right now his safety was more important. Yes, he wanted all of the inhabitants in the village to be safe, but Karl was the one that he cared about most.

Sapnap had been through about thirty pillagers he would say, all of them becoming charred corpses on the ground. He left them there because he didn’t care, being too selfish to think about anything other than Karl’s safety. He knew that the other bandits and some of the village inhabitants saw them, being able to infer that it was the work of the fire god. He saw the panicked expressions, the looks of disgust, and now and again one or two people looked fascinated, but the thoughts of the humans were subjective to him. The only one that mattered was Karl, and he would make sure that he was safe.

Sapnap eventually came across the last group of bandits, the lot of them also happening to be the biggest. He ducked behind a nearby pillar, watching them intently. They had certain hostages, ones that looked to be miserable, yet there was one victim in particular that was taking a chance and standing up for himself.

Karl.

It was Karl fucking Jacobs in the hands of those monsters, the one person that Sapnap didn’t want to be in this sort of situation. His eyes widened at the realization, hands balling into fists. He felt sparks begin to crackle from under his nails, wanting nothing more than to just send a line of fire their way, but he had to be careful. He didn’t want to hurt anyone innocent, and he _definitely_ didn’t want Karl to be at risk. He would have to find out a more strategic way of going about this. For now, he decided that he would try and make out what the pillagers were saying, trying to find some sort of weakness that he could use to his advantage.

“...shut up, or I will find your family and kill them. I’m not playing games here, Kid,” one of the pillagers muttered, talking to the struggling Karl Jacobs in his arms.

“As if you know who they are!” Karl snapped back, moving his wrists as best as he could while they were bound. “You and your group of shitheads are a disgrace to the gods and this world! What is your motive here?”

“You don’t need to know that information,” another bandit piped up, the man the voice belonged to having chocolate brown hair and eyes. “Only we do. You just have to listen and be made an example of.”

Karl rolled his eyes, obviously not amused with whatever the bandits had to say. There weren’t very many other captives, but the ones that were being held hostage were looking at the brunet with wide eyes and a frightened expression on their faces. It was obvious that they would much rather stay quiet and listen, believing that the bandits wouldn’t hurt them or would hurt them less if they did. Karl was the only one that was standing up for himself as well as others.

“You will not make an example out of me,” Karl retorted, jaw clenched as he spoke. “You will _not_ make an example out of _us_. Guys, if all of you speak up and fight with me, they can’t do anything! Pray to the gods, they’ll answer our calls!” Karl encouraged the other victims, looking at them with a softer expression on his face. His eyes were big, the biggest blue eyes that Sapnap had ever seen, and he was reminded at that moment how much he loved the mortal. Karl could do things that nobody else could, and he admired every part of him.

“You think that the gods care about you?” The first bandit laughed, throwing back his head as ginger hair fell over his eyes. “Bullshit. They only care about themselves. Is that not obvious?”

“Exactly,” the brown-haired bandit smirked, reaching a hand up to scratch at the beard he had going for him. “Unless there is some sort of colossal war down on Earth, they won’t get involved. They don’t care about you or your individual lives— they’re too selfish for any of that. You should give into us because I swear on The Blood God that nobody will be coming here to help you and your pals.”

Karl shook his head, denying their claims and still defying them. “No. Don’t you see the charred corpses on the ground? Is that not a mark of the fire god? He is watching this go down and he is on our side. He and the other gods do not want us to suffer like this.”

The ginger grit his teeth, stalking up to Karl. He bent down and put his weight down on one knee, moving his hand to hook under Karl’s chin as he tilted his head up. “The fire god is _useless_ ,” he snarled, not caring about the villager flinching under his touch. “He is never called upon for a reason. Those charred corpses are just his idea of fun, burning multiple humans because he has nothing better to do. All he does is cause problems, not give solutions to them, so I suggest that you rethink your values and change your actions.”

Sapnap curled back into himself, feeling upset as he overheard the bandits. He knew that he wasn’t appreciated as much as the other gods, he had known that for a while, but hearing it from the mortals was always more painful. He couldn’t recall ever being called _useless_ , and the word happened to hurt him more than he anticipated it to. He was almost convinced to turn back around, thinking that he wouldn’t be able to actually help these humans anyway, but Karl spoke up again.

“The fire god is underappreciated,” he insisted, ignoring the gasps of the other villagers being taken hostage. “He gave us the gift of both light and solstice, one of the very elements in which we need to live. Our ancestors used it to survive and different people around the world do the same. He should be praised for his actions and his skill because, without it, our species surely would have died out ages ago.”

The two main bandits and all of their buddies looked at Karl as if he were insane, big bug eyes looking like they were almost going to pop out of their skulls. Karl looked to be confident with what he was talking about, not caring about anyone else around him. The only thing that he was doing as of now was defending the gods and the fire god in particular. It was admirable, the way that he could speak his mind even if the rest of the world wasn’t ready to listen to him.

The ginger opened his mouth, looking like he was going to speak, but Karl ended up interrupting him before he could. “I had a friend once,” he started, the regretful tone of voice causing Sapnap to feel like a knife had been stabbed through his heart. “His name was Nick, or at least I think it was. He had a fascination for fire and things that are shunned around here today. He didn’t have very many people to talk to, no family or friends, and yet he happened to be one of the kindest and smartest people that I have ever known. I ended up pushing him away because of my own suspicions, and while I am not sure if they are true or not, I regret it. I wish that he could speak to you all. I bet that he could convince you to see the beauty of fire, _and_ to be more open with learning about dangerous things in this world.”

Sapnap was speechless. He didn’t know what to say. After all of that, after the situation that had gone down with Karl in the woods… the human still managed to speak positively about him? He couldn’t believe that was the case, especially since the brunet had been so hurt. Then again, Sapnap supposed that it was just _Karl_ , and he could appreciate that.

He could appreciate _him_.

He may not know anything about love, may not have ever loved someone romantically before, but he would give him the world. Even if Sapnap couldn’t be a part of it, he wanted Karl to be happy, and he would be watching over him until his inevitable death. 

The god was so lost in his thoughts that he almost didn’t notice Karl being dragged away from the rest of the group, being forced to walk towards a certain pole in the middle of the town square.

Sapnap recognized that pole, and the other villagers did too. It was the pole that witches would be strapped to, the pole that would hold fast and true while the fire was used to burn them alive. It was the only time that the use of a flame was permitted in the village Karl lived in, and also the scariest time. Nobody ever came out of the scorching embers alive, and Karl would now be subjected to that.

“W-wait, what are you doing!?” Karl cried out, eyes wide as he saw where he was being led. The other villagers were forced to stay where they were, the rest of the bandits keeping them there while the ginger and the taller brunet led the goofy-looking boy to the location.

“You’re speaking up against the laws of your government,” the ginger grit out, pulling Karl up as he forcefully pushed his back against the wood. Karl struggled, looking completely scared for the first time since he had been kidnapped. The other bandit made quick work of getting Karl’s hands above his head, tying them together and to the wood as he then moved down to do his ankles.

“I’m not a witch!” Karl retaliated, not letting up on his fighting. “You can’t burn me, I’m not a witch! The law says—”

“The law says that anyone who commits treason against their home will be burned,” the dark-haired bandit growled, finishing the binding of the ropes as he took a step back to admire his work. “You just spoke out against the rules of fire. You admitted to being in the woods with some _heathen_ , someone who convinced you to condone the use of fire like you are doing now. You must be held accountable for that, and made an example for anyone else who tries to disobey.”

“Since when did criminals like _you_ obey the law?” Karl taunted, hoping that it would be enough to move the public against the bandits. As of now, the villagers looked to be completely fine with what was happening; still horrified, but not against it. There had been many burning against witches and other traitors, and it soon became routine for someone’s closest friends to be charged and killed without a second thought. 

The ginger threw his head back, braying laughter sounding from his lips like a trumpet. “We are not criminals, Kid,” he chortled, brown-orange eyes flashing with intent. “There are simply things that we need and certain rules that we choose not to abide by. Everyone needs to survive in this world; the method of how is subjective. Schlatt and I’s crew happen to agree with the law against fire, and you spoke out against that. This is the only time it should be used. Speaking of Schlatt, how is the fire coming?” He hummed, looking over his shoulder at the dark-haired man.

“Almost got it,” Schlatt grunted, swiping a rock against a thicker stick. He continued to do that a few times, waiting until he got a spark, then let it land on the flammable material. He watched as the top of the stick went up in flames, the ginger backing out of the circle. The bandit, Schlatt, smirked, looking towards the firewood that was already under poor Karl. He bent down, touching the tip of the torch to the bottom as he watched the bark erupt into flames. “Have fun, Sir,” the man sneered, flashing a mock bow Karl’s way. “Have fun dying to the very thing you called on when you were weak.”

Sapnap and Karl both watched in horror as the flames spread, steadily growing higher and higher. Karl grit his teeth, sweat beading up on his forehead while his cheeks turned a slight red color. It was now that Sapnap realized what Dream had been talking about, the reason why he couldn’t see the humans.

He had put Karl at risk. Karl was destined to die because of him, to die as a result of his own mistakes, and to die to the very flame that he had chosen to start the other night. It was a cruel and horrible fate, and Sapanp didn’t want this to be the end for the mortal.

He knew that he had to do something, no matter what it would be. The fire was too great of a distance away from him to control, but he knew that if he got closer he would easily be able to do so. The only problem with that would be the fact that his identity would be revealed, the identity of the fire god, as he would definitely have to step out in public so that he could save the brunet. The whole village would see him for what he really was, _Karl_ would see him for who he was, and they could determine whether or not he was a monster.

Gods were never supposed to go down to Earth.

Mortals and deities were never supposed to mix.

Rules were meant to be followed.

And Sapnap would change that.

Without a second thought, the raven ran out from behind the area in which he was hiding, throwing his hands out to control the fire. He heard the audible gasps around him, felt the judgmental stares on his back, but he ignored it. He focused on the task at hand, making sure that the flame was tamed and eventually calmed down. He reduced it to ashes, panting softly from the stress of the situation. He had just revealed himself as a god to everyone, revealed that he could tame fire and bend it to his will, and gods were never supposed to make big displays in front of the mortals. Sapnap had blatantly ignored that rule, and he knew that he would regret it the moment that the other gods heard about it, but he didn’t care about that right now. All that mattered was that Karl got out of here.

Sapnap used the moment of surprise to his advantage, rushing up to Karl as he immediately cupped his cheeks. “Karl,” he whispered, keeping an ear out for anyone trying to rush upon him from behind. “Karl, are you alright?”

Karl stared at Sapnap with wide eyes, taking in the sight of him. “You…” he took a deep breath, his whole body shuddering. “You’re the fire god.”

Sapnap’s breath hitched, gazing at the trembling human under him. He couldn’t gage whether or not he was afraid or relieved, but that didn’t matter right now. Sapnap could hear the bandits thundering at them, cries being made, and chaos soon starting to ensue. He had to play the hero at this point and make sure that everyone was safe.

Sapnap moved one of his hands to curl around Karl’s wrists, summoning a fireball in the other. He moved it closer to the ropes, watching as they caught on fire and began to burn. He noted the slight panic on Karl’s face, panic from the fire being so close to his skin, but he knew that the human essentially trusted him. Sapnap knew everything about fire, and he would make sure that Karl didn’t get hurt by it. 

He singed the ropes around Karl’s ankles as well, blowing out the flames as soon as they were undone enough. He pulled the human into his side, wrapping his arm around his torso, then turned back to face the bandits. Sapnap used his free arm and brought it up, causing a column of fire to be created between him and the criminals approaching. They were forced to stop if they didn’t want to be burnt, but some of them were already running at full speed, so they ran straight into the wall and burnt alive as a result. 

The raven flicked his wrist, extinguishing the fire. He moved with such precision yet laziness that it was almost endearing, and it was obvious to Karl that he knew what he was doing. Sapnap wasn’t focusing on Karl’s face, however, he was focusing on the innocent villagers that needed to be freed from the criminals.

“Hold onto me,” the god muttered into Karl’s ear, still keeping him tucked firmly into his side. “I’ll keep you safe.”

Karl listened to the god’s request, pressing further into his chest as he felt the raven begin to move. Karl would have listened to Nick — if this god was even _called_ Nick — no matter what, still trusting him to some extent. Everything made sense now, the reason why he was so secretive about himself. It would be only natural for a god to not want to reveal his or her status among humans.

The human watched in awe as Nick fought off the other bandits, using various methods of fire to do so. He could create it from nothing and extinguish it as follows, making sure that nobody innocent got burned in the crossfire. It was impressive the way that he could work fire to his advantage, but Karl supposed that was his main talent, though he already knew that he could list multiple positive traits about this god that had nothing to do with fire.

Eventually, the raven had charred all the bandits to corpses, leaving some alive but in great fits of pain. He let Karl go when he was sure that nobody would hurt him, walking up to the innocent villagers as he began to untie them.

Sapnap tried to ignore the mix of pointed glares and fearful wide eyes.

He got a mother untied followed by her kids, a man that looked to be a librarian, two small children that had somehow been kidnapped when out playing, and so many more. Once he was sure that everyone was free and safe, he took a step back, folding his arms.

“Thank you,” one woman muttered, her black hair shimmering under the sunlight. She was curled in the arms of a much taller man, a man with curly brown hair that often draped over his eyes. “I don’t know what we would have done without you, my Lord.”

“I-I—” Sapnap blushed, not quite used to the praise. He looked down, running a hand through his hair sheepishly. “Thank _you_ …”

Karl gently put a hand on the god’s shoulder, causing the raven to look back at him. Sapnap stared up at the taller human with wide eyes, finding himself getting lost in those sapphire orbs yet again. He gazed at him for another moment before blinking, realizing where he was and what he had to do.

The fire god said nothing, turning on his heel and grabbing Karl’s wrist. He pulled the man back towards his house, ignoring the confused gasp that elicited between parted pink lips. Sapnap stopped when the two of them were stationed outside of Karl’s door, taking his hand off of him. 

“This is where we part ways,” Sapnap said as formally as he could, trying to put some distance between them. Doing this was already hard enough, so he wanted to make it easier on both of them. He couldn’t let himself cry, couldn’t let himself have a breakdown now, he had to be strong for Karl. He had to reassure the mortal that he would be okay, even if Sapnap wanted to be the person that would help him to succeed and be happy.

“What!?” Karl cried incredulously, eyes wide as he stared at the god. “No! You and I have gotten to know each other for a while now, and you’re just going to walk out on me?”

Sapnap’s breath hitched, the god looking at the human with a longing expression on his face. “I’m not walking out on you,” he shook his head, trying to deny the facts. “I have to do this. I can’t be getting involved in your personal life. I’m sorry.”

The human furrowed his brow, looking at Sapnap as if he were all the stars in the sky. “Why not?” he asked, hoping to get some sort of explanation. “You have already talked to me before, talked to me about touchy subjects, and gotten to know me for who I am. Why can’t I continue to talk to you that way?”

“Because,” Sapnap shook his head, the tears pricking at his eyes threatening to spill. “You’re a human and I’m a god. I was never supposed to be down here. I was never supposed to talk to you. I… I was never supposed to fall in _love_ with you!”

There was a silence as Sapnap’s words resonated between the two men, the mortal staring at the immortal with a lost look in his eyes. No more words needed to be said, no other actions being needed to convey the true feelings of the god. The way that Sapnap shifted his feet uncomfortably, the way he brought his hand up to his face to wipe at his eyes, the method in which he chose to close himself off… it was enough for Karl to know just how much pain this god must have been in.

The human took it upon himself to be the leader. He initiated the first move, walking up to Sapnap as he wrapped his arms around him. He gently put his hand under the god’s chin, tilting his head up. Blue eyes met brown, slightly red at the corners, peeking out between the small gaps of bronzed fingers.

Karl gently moved Sapnap’s other hand away from his face, leaning down to press his forehead against the raven’s. His lips parted just slightly, a small breath passing through them before he could finally bring himself to speak.

“What’s your name?” He simply asked, the question being so out of place in the midst of the situation.

Sapnap was taken aback by the casual attitude that Karl was displaying. Didn’t he understand that he wasn’t going to see him ever again? Nonetheless, Sapnap leaned into the thumbs gently swiping over the tears on his cheeks, grazing over smooth skin and scattered freckles. “S-Sapnap,” he answered honestly, stuttering over his words. He supposed that he could grant Karl at least that. “Karl, I-I’ll watch over you from the clouds, keep y-you safe and all, but _please_ —”

The god tried to speak, tried to pull away from the warm palms on his cheeks, but found that he couldn’t. His hands had been curled around Karl’s wrists, trying to push him away, but his movements ceased when he felt himself be silenced. 

Sapnap was feeling the softest and most tender pair of lips against his own, lips that he had only dreamt of kissing. He felt himself being dragged out of his body, dragged away from his purpose and problems, only focusing on _Karl_. Karl, the man that could turn him to mush, the one who he would move mountains for, start a war for, even _die_ for if he could. Anything for Karl, he would do anything to see him smile, and if this was it, it was worth it.

The god found himself wrapping his arms around the human’s waist, pulling him close. He always thought that _he_ would have been the one to dominate any sort of kiss that was exchanged between the two of them, but something told him that this was better. Sapnap had never been in the mercy of a human, never allowed himself to be this _sensitive_ in front of one, and yet it felt so _right_. He choked back a sob as he let his own eyes flutter closed, relishing in the feeling of being loved.

The moment was over too quick, Karl being the first one to pull away. Both the human and the god panted, collecting their breaths, gazing into each other’s eyes while doing so. Karl was the first one to smile, that same goofy smile Sapnap had fallen in love with. 

“I fell in love with you when I started to get to know you,” Karl admitted, a light blush dusting his cheeks as he spoke. “But I didn’t want to pressure you because I thought you weren’t into men. I… that’s part of the reason why I was so defensive when you mentioned talking to someone else. Yes, I was worried about myself, but I was wondering if I was losing you.”

Sapnap felt his heart melt at Karl’s words, bringing one of his hands up to caress his cheek. He watched the human lean into his hand, smiling at the movement. “Karl, I—”

“What are you doing?” A voice interrupted him from behind. Sapnap’s eyes widened, the raven turning around so that he could look at whoever was there.

He met eyes with both Dream and George, Dream glaring at the two of them while George looked excited and supportive. The brunet was wrapped around the blond’s arm, sticking close to the man that he loved, and Sapnap remembered just how much he envied a relationship like theirs. The raven instantly got in front of Karl, not knowing what Dream would do.

“I’m being with the one that I love,” he answered bluntly, not saying anything else to justify himself. “Just like you are with George.”

Dream grit his teeth, folding his arms. George frowned as he felt the blond remove his arm from around him, instinctively curling his hand around the interior of his bicep. “It’s not the same. You are a god and you are in love with a mortal. It will never work out.”

“It will,” Sapnap argued, glancing over his shoulder to look at Karl. His eyes instantly softened when he saw how scared the human looked, reaching back and putting a hand on his shoulder to comfort him. “It already has.”

Dream’s eyes widened at the realization, understanding that Sapnap had already taken his interactions with this human too far. “You…” he started, taking a deep breath as he tried to calm himself. “I’m sorry, you can’t be with him. I’ll get Bad to wipe his memory and the two of you can be on your merry ways. A god loving a mortal will never work out.”

Karl gasped in anguish, not wanting to think about that happening. He wrapped his arms around Sapnap, pulling the raven close. The fire god sighed and put a hand on top of his head, gently letting it tangle in his hair while the brunet pressed his face into his chest. “That’s not happening.”

“ _What_?” Dream growled, unbelieving that Sapnap spoke up against him. “Sapnap, that’s not your decision to make! You do realize that you will live forever while he will not, right? You are setting yourself up for heartbreak!”

Sapnap hesitated, biting his bottom lip. Dream was right, he didn’t want to go through that, but perhaps there was another way…

“Fine,” the raven huffed, causing a panicked look to cross Karl’s face. “You’re right, he will die before me. I don’t want to be miserable in the end—” he didn’t miss the smug smile on Dream’s lips, the blond relishing in the fact that he was right, “...but I don’t have to be. Dream,” he took a deep breath, closing his eyes before speaking again. “I don’t want to keep my immortality.”

There was an audible inhale from Dream, the action sharp, causing him to choke from the sheer suddenness of it all. He coughed a few times, regaining his composure as he stared at the raven with wide eyes. “You… what?”

“I said,” Sapnap began, tentative to speak again. “I want to be mortal.”

“You…” Dream gulped, playing nervously with his fingers. It was a sign of weakness that was rarely seen by the god, rare that he would be as anxious as he was, and the fact that it was happening now said a lot. “You’d rather die with him than live on with us?”

Why did Dream have to phrase it like that? Sapnap weighed his options, running a hand through his raven locks as he did. On one hand, his home was with the rest of the gods, and he had lived there all his life. On the other, he could have the chance to be with the man of his dreams, and he had treated him much better than his friends ever had. Well, perhaps that wasn’t the case, but the reality of the situation was that Sapnap was underappreciated. He was constantly miserable and angry being a god, not liking the way that he was treated, and he would much prefer to have a life of his own on Earth. He would prefer to spend it with _Karl_ , the one who accepted him for who he was and never thought otherwise. He made his decision.

“Yes,” Sapnap confirmed, ignoring Karl opening his mouth to speak words of protest. “I would much rather be with him than you. I’m not happy as a god. I want to be human.”

Dream stared at his friend for a long moment, facing an inner conflict himself. He didn’t want Sapnap to be sad, but he also didn’t want him to die, and he wanted to continue to have his friend be living with them. However, above anything else, he wanted Sapnap’s happiness, and it was obvious that he wasn’t going to get it through his immortality and talent with flame.

“Fine,” Dream determined, taking a few steps forwards. He put a hand on the raven’s shoulder, looking down at him with a serious expression on his face. “If I am going to do this, Sapnap, you will age at the same pace as a regular human. You will lose your status as a god and your powers with fire. You will still have all of the knowledge about it and probably still a gift, but you will no longer be able to easily control it or create it from nothing. We will either have to find a new fire god or I will have to take the responsibility of a second power. You will never see any of us again. Do you agree to all of those terms?”

Sapnap never had a home in the clouds. He never felt like he could be himself. There were always too many expectations, too many rules, too specific of a model that he had to follow for the humans on Earth. The raven had never been like that, never been one to lead the pack, and preferred to be strong, but on the sidelines. He would much prefer spending his life with someone, with _Karl_ , even if the two of them did not have any powers or special talents. It was worth it for him.

“Yes,” Sapnap nodded, looking into Dream’s eyes with a sad gaze. “I agree, but before you convert me, let me say goodbye to you and George.”

“Of course,” Dream nodded, taking a step back. He looked towards George, assuming that Sapnap would want to say goodbye to him first. He was right, seeing the raven-haired pyrokine walk up to the brunet and wrap his arms around him in a tight hug.

“I’m sorry,” Sapnap sobbed, pressing his face into the crook of the shorter god’s neck. “I’m sorry that I’m leaving you for him. I was just never happy, and he makes me happy, and he’s just so… s-so—”

“Hey,” George soothed him, rubbing Sapnap’s back gently. “You have what you wanted now. You have the man of your dreams. I understand the extremities people go to for love, and you are completely validated in that. I’ll miss you, yes, but I get that you have to do this,” George sighed, blinking back his own tears. “And I know that you’ll be happy with him. Karl will treat you well.”

“Yeah,” Sapnap muttered, pulling back from George. He held the water god’s hands, running his thicker fingers over his thinner ones. “I love you, George.”

George loved him back, but he could never say it. He had never been able to say those three words — those three dreaded words — to Dream, and the gods understood that. George had other ways of showing his love, and in this case, he decided to reciprocate by gently lifting Sapnap’s right hand and pressing a soft kiss to his knuckles. Both boys knew what it meant, and that was all that mattered. 

Sapnap walked back from George, turning to go closer to Karl. Dream was standing next to the brunet, so Sapnap would get the chance to talk with him as well. The raven stopped in front of the blond, biting his bottom lip. He shifted his feet, feeling slightly uncomfortable under the judgmental gaze of the blond, not knowing what to say. “Dream, I’m sor—”

“Don’t,” Dream put up his hand, interrupting the smaller god. “I understand. You got into a situation, and while I might not agree with it, I want you to be happy. You deserve happiness, Sapnap, and I suppose that it is better to live a shorter life and love it than live forever and be miserable the whole time.”

The raven looked up, nodding slowly. For a god of emotions, Dream could be surprisingly cold, and Sapnap expected this to go the same way. That’s why he was surprised when he was pulled into a warm chest, being enveloped in probably the tightest hug he had ever experienced. He struggled to move, struggled to breathe as he wrapped his arms back around the blond, hearing a soft sniffle from above him.

“I’ll miss you,” Dream promised, running his hand through Sapnap’s soft locks of hair. “Everyone in the clouds will, but me especially. I’ll miss having someone to scold all the time.”

Sapnap chuckled a bit at his joke, taking a wheezing breath of air before pushing on Dream’s chest to get out of the bear hug. Dream let him go, watching the raven take a step back. “I’ll miss you too, Dream,” Sapnap mumbled, the statement soft yet still audible to the other. “And thanks for trying to look out for me.”

“I love you,” Dream declared, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

“I love you too,” Sapnap replied, turning to look at Karl now. Karl, that wonderful _Karl_ , the human who he would sacrifice everything for. Karl Jacobs, the man of his dreams, soon to become reality.

“You don’t have to do this, you know,” Karl spoke up, a tear slipping down his cheek as he began to shake. “Y-you have a life up there, you know? You can g-go back to the clouds, I’ll be fine down here, I’ll—”

“Baby. Stop,” Sapnap chuckled, wrapping his arms around the crying mortal. He pulled Karl into his chest, rubbing his back soothingly. He glanced back over his shoulder at Dream, taking the chance to give him a nod— _the_ nod. 

The nod that gave his consent to be turned into a human.

The nod that gave his consent to lose his powers.

The nod that gave his consent to lose everything.

Sapnap heard Dream muttering a quick spell, felt it being cast on him as he held Karl in his arms. He felt tingly, tingly and nervous, but not scared. He felt his powers dissipate, a buzzing feeling starting in the constant pulse of his hand and spreading throughout his bloodstream. He felt his name being stripped away from him, felt that he was no longer Sapnap, but _Nick_ , the simple man that he always wanted to be. 

His future journey was unknown, but he wasn’t afraid. As long as he was with Karl, he would be fine. As long as they were together, they would find a way to succeed. As long as the force of love and the strength of adoration lulled them into that familiar lullaby, the need to work _together_ , they would live good lives. 

Karl pulled back while he saw Nick’s transformation, watching the slight orange blaze in his eyes die out. This was a man that had literally given up everything for _him_ , alone. This was love, love like Karl had never felt before, and he knew he would cherish it for as long as he had. He reached up and tangled a hand in that raven hair, pulling Nick into another breathtaking kiss as the other two gods took their leave. 

They would live short lives, but good ones, for they had each other.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed reading this fic! This was actually a Secret Santa gift for someone on the Dead Dove Kingdom (DDK) Discord server, a MCYT server that I am an admin on. It is owned by the writer Whoreofaneboy, so I would suggest that you check out their fics as well! We mainly work together on a lot of the main things, however, so I guess I am a pretty big part of it :D
> 
> Want to join? Here's the invite [link](https://discord.gg/BeP7a29Z3T)! Always looking to see more people, just make sure that when you join you put that you came from this fic in your introduction! 
> 
> Also consider joining my personal Discord server! It is new but we are looking to make a nice community! The link is [here](https://discord.gg/3WxPJSVfEQ).
> 
> I love you all, and thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this! <3
> 
> -Astrid


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